No. 4 Frederick tops No. 10 Goretti, 62-59

January 21, 1997

By MARK KELLER

Staff Correspondent

It was a situation in which most coaches would have called a timeout.

St. Maria Goretti had just scored eight straight points to take a 42-35 lead midway through the third quarter, but Frederick coach Tom Faska chose not to stop the clock. He wanted to see how his team would respond.

The Cadets came up big, finishing the third period on a 15-6 run and battling their way to a 62-59 win over the No. 10 Gaels Tuesday night at Goretti.

Point guard Emonte Hill led the charge for No. 4 Frederick (11-2) by scoring nine points and making two big steals during the streak that gave the Cadets a 50-48 lead entering the fourth quarter.

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"Luckily we have a veteran team and that run didn't rattle them," Faska said. "The tide was turning their way, but we came down and Al (Green) scored to end it. Then Emonte hit the big shots."

The biggest of Hill's shots came in the waning seconds of the third quarter. He swished a 3-pointer from the left side with 12 seconds left to tie the score at 48. He followed that with a steal in Goretti's backcourt and hit a layup with seven seconds to go to put Frederick ahead by two. Hill led the Cadets with 25 points, eight assists and four steals.

A transition layup by Hill gave Frederick a 56-53 advantage with 3:30 to play, but four consecutive free throws by Kyle Logan pushed Goretti (10-10) ahead 57-56.

Green's foul line jumper with 32 seconds left moved Frederick in front by one. Goretti had a chance to regain the lead, but Lee Green missed a pair of layups and, after John Thomas pulled down the offensive rebound, Hill stole the ball and passed ahead to Al Green. Green was fouled intentionally, but missed both free throws - Frederick's first foul shots - to keep a glimmer of hope alive for the Gaels.

Hill made two free throws for a 62-59 Frederick lead with nine seconds left, and the Cadets denied Goretti a last shot.

"You can't turn the ball over 25 times to a team like that," said Goretti coach Cokey Robertson. "With their quickness, we couldn't afford to give it up that many times. Hopefully we learned some things on how to play down the stretch, doing those little things."

Logan finished with 24 points, eight rebounds and five steals, and Thomas had 19 points and eight rebounds for the Gaels, who shot 56 percent from the field.

"This is a tough place to play," Faska said. "Goretti has so much tradition and they are so well-coached, you have to feel good to come in here and win."